The group of tourist accommodation companies in Catalonia, including hotels, campsites, and apartments, have expressed their "total and unanimous" rejection of the 100% increase in the Tax on Stays in Tourist Establishments (IEET). This reaction comes just hours after the agreement between the three parliamentary groups to push the measure forward was announced.
“"The measure is improvised, lacking strategic rigor, disconnected from the country's real needs, and driven by a purely revenue-collection objective."
The employers' association warns that the tax increase, in a context of “international geopolitical and economic uncertainty,” could negatively affect tourist demand behavior. Furthermore, they fear a “serious” impact on domestic tourism, especially in areas like the Pyrenees and the Terres de l'Ebre, which rely heavily on this seasonal activity.
The president of the Federació d’Hostaleria de Lleida, Josep Castellarnau, expressed his frontal rejection, arguing that the reality of the Lleida demarcation differs greatly from mass tourism areas like Barcelona or the coast. Castellarnau stresses that the increase will worsen the “comparative disadvantage” against Aragon, a direct competitor in skiing and hiking, where no such tax exists.
The planned increase will place Catalan rates above those in Andorra in most categories (except 2 and 3 stars), and far above those in France (including Northern Catalonia). For example, a five-star hotel in Catalonia will pay 6 euros, compared to 3 euros in Andorra and 3 euros in France (or 4 euros for “palaces”).
